PLYMOUTH parents are being taken to court over their skiving schoolchildren at a shocking rate of more than one per week.

A total of 45 mums and dads have been prosecuted for letting their youngsters bunk off school in the last ten months – and more are to come.

The Herald can reveal the figures after one city mother was in the dock over her teenage son's dismal attendance record.

Whitleigh widow April Sluggett was ordered to carry out unpaid work after her 14-year-old spent just a single morning in the classroom during May.

Hers is one of 51 cases – including six involving repeat offenders – to have been taken to court by Plymouth City Council since September last year. And now a city education chief is warning of a looming rise in the number of parents feeling the strong arm of the law, as strict Government guidelines kick in.

Councillor Nicky Williams, the council's cabinet member for children and young people, said reducing parent-condoned absences was "one of Plymouth's biggest challenges".

Statistics show that pupils attending 85 per cent or more of their lessons perform significantly better in exams. The Government commissioned a report on truancy earlier this year, after education secretary Michael Gove spoke of the "missing million" who are persistently absent.

The Taylor Review has led to "persistent absence" being redefined as missing 15 per cent of school days and above, down from 20 per cent.

That means councils up and down the country are likely to target increasing numbers of parents over the coming months and years.

"Reducing truancy is a priority," Cllr Williams said. "It's proven that educational achievement is directly linked to attendance. One of our biggest challenges in Plymouth is to reduce parentally-condoned absence."

Parents are classified as condoning a day off school when the reason is anything other than genuine ill health or other extenuating circumstances, such as a death in the family. Cllr Williams said a large proportion of 'illnesses' among pupils were thought to be faked with the full knowledge of mums and dads, making them difficult to identify.

"It sets an incredibly bad example for young people," she said. "It teaches them that school is not that important. Parents and children must understand that there are consequences if they break the law and do not go to school regularly."

Two further city parents are expected before Plymouth Magistrates shortly for allegedly failing to ensure their children regularly attend class. The council says it works hard with schools to crack down on the issue, and offers an "enormous" amount of support before resorting to issuing penalty warnings or bringing prosecutions.

Comments

I'v been court twice as my lad was bunking off etc. If anyone can help me from it ever happening again please let me no? 'MAGICIAN/MAGIC WAND',+i'v a life too witch the school/courts never even thought ov, & i do not need all the stupid agro!!+I am a good 'PARENT'.Basicaly the system R far from 'REALITY'.Get real as us Parents cannot control R Kidz once they gone school.If i'm wrong??there would B alot ov Parents stuck in n class room & it would not B Good?well i can imagine.& yeh from Swilly+n system S..ks.

"It's proven that educational achievement is directly linked to attendance. One of our biggest challenges in Plymouth is to reduce parentally-condoned absence."
Surely the first sentence should read "possible educational achievement"? As it is, it implies that all a child has to do is turn up to gain qualifications.
How do they prove parents' condoning absence? Unless they're thick enough to admit it.

I don't see a problem with it. The types of kids who wish to skive would only disrupt those who wish to study's education. Leave them be - just make it known to the parents that their chavspawn will not be able to claim any benefits due to failing to attend education.
Truancy should directly affect the right to future benefits. Bring back the workhouses I say - there would be more parking space in Plymouth if they did - that's for sure!

I hated my schools and was glad when i left and was finally free of all the false values the teachers were putting in our heads.
No wonder more and more parents in Britain and the US are opting to homeschool kids themselves.

Why are you saying 8 hours a week? If they are going to school, it's 25 hours a week...
And what do you damn you can't make them go to school... Some one else's fault your kids don't do as their told is it?

I can't see any reason why a child would be getting only 8 hours a week education. The child will have been assigned a school and the parents would endeavour to see the child goes...I don't see a problem.

blond13 long before it gets to the point of a court appearance the parent(s) will have been notified and asked to make the effort. It has to start with the parents instilling in their offspring from a very early age the value of education. Sadly too many parents these days neither know or care where their kids are or what they get up to.

I'm surprised that it is only termed "persistent absence" when it reaches 15 per cent. That's nearly 30 school days a year! Of course there will be genuine absences, but I think that councils should be free to take action when absences exceed about 5 per cent. If the absences are down to something like bullying, then this should hopefully mean that the situation is addressed earlier, so all the more reason to investigate earlier. My daughter's school rings parents by about 9.30 if a pupil is not there. The only time it happened to me was when my daughter was on an authorised absence (dental appointment or something) but the school hadn't recorded the permission slip for some reason.
A parent who allows his/her child to play truant regularly for no good reason is damaging the child's future prospects - but maybe parents like that don't care anyway?